The Claims Auditor is responsible for formally examining all accounts, charges, claims or demands against the school district.
A. Qualifications
- Legal Eligibility for Position
The legal qualifications for appointment to the position of Claims Auditor in a central school district are contained within Section 1709(20-a) of the Education Law.
Individuals eligible for appointment to this office may not be a member of the Board of Education, the Clerk or Treasurer of the Board of Education, Superintendent of Schools, any official of the district responsible for business management, the person designated as purchasing agent, clerical personnel directly involved in accounting and purchasing functions or under the direct supervision of the Superintendent of Schools or the independent auditor. - Suggested Knowledge and Skills
Although the Board recognizes that specific training is not required by law, experience and training in the areas of accounting and auditing are desirable.
In addition to Board of Education Policies and Regulations, the Claims Auditor must be fully knowledgeable of the legal requirements associated with purchases in a public school environment including, but not limited to, the requirements relating to and/or set forth in the following:
- Competitive Bidding (Section 103 of the General Municipal Law)
- Requests for Proposals/Purchases not required to be bid (Section 104-b of the General Municipal Law)
- Lease and Lease-Purchase requirements (Real Property Law Sections 1709(7); 2503; 403-b; Education Law Sections 1725; 1725-a; General Municipal Law 109- b)
- Separate contracts for construction (General Municipal Law Section 101)
- Professional service and consultant contracts.
B. Appointment
Establishment of the office of Claims Auditor is an optional appointment, which rests with the Board of Education. The Claims Auditor serves at the pleasure of the Board. The salary for the Claims Auditor shall be established on the Part Time Wage List. The form and amount of the bond for the Claims Auditor should be a part of the appointing motion that usually takes place at the Annual Organizational Meeting.
C. Primary Relations
- Board of Education – The Claims Auditor is an employee of the Board of Education and is directly responsible to the Board of Education. The Claims Auditor shall serve at thepleasure of the Board and the office of Claims Auditor may be abolished by the Board at any time. The Claims Auditor may, at times, be requested to attend meetings of the Board of Education, and the Board’s Audit Committee.
- Superintendent of Schools – The Claims Auditor shall recognize that the Superintendent of Schools is the chief executive officer of the school district. The Claims Auditor, while not responsible to the Superintendent of Schools, shall work cooperatively with the Superintendent and his/her staff in the best interest of the school district.
- Assistant Superintendent for Business – The Claims Auditor shall recognize that the Assistant Superintendent for Business is the chief business official of the school district. The Claims Auditor, while not responsible to the Assistant Superintendent of Business, shall work cooperatively with him/her and his/her staff in the best interests of the school district.
- Business Office Staff Members – The Claims Auditor is responsible for approving and allowing payment of claims, which were processed and recommended by the business office. The Claims Auditor shall work cooperatively with the business office staff to assure legal and businesslike payment of claims.
In the event of a difference of opinion regarding the approval of a claim for payment that cannot be resolved by reviewing the questioned claim with the appropriate business office personnel (such as the Assistant Superintendent for Business and/or the Business Administrator), the opinion of the Claims Auditor shall prevail and the item referred to the Board of Education via the Audit Committee.
D. Duties and Responsibilities
The Claims Auditor is directly responsible to the Board of Education. When the office of Claims Auditor has been established and a Claims Auditor has been appointed and duly qualified, the powers and duties of the Board of Education shall devolve upon and thereafter be exercised by such auditor with respect to auditing, allowing or rejecting all accounts, charges, claims or demands against the school district during the continuance of such office.
All claims must be presented to and approved for payment by the Claims Auditor.
Payments of claims for public utility services, postage, freight and express charges may be made in advance of audit in accordance with Sections 1724(3) of the Education Law.
The employee who initially receives the claim shall review for obvious deficiencies and, if necessary, return the claim to the vendor for proper completion or compliance.
When the claims are delivered to the Claims Auditor for approval, he/she should ascertain that at least the following tests have been performed prior to releasing the claim for payment:
- Track the numerical sequence of the checks being approved.
- Prove the mathematical accuracy of all computations. This should include verification of extensions and additions and the recalculation of any discount.
- Determine that the charges are not duplicates of items already paid. In this respect, recollection of a previous voucher with similar charges from the same vendor should prompt further investigation.
- Compare the voucher with the purchase order.
- See that the voucher is properly itemized. Vouchers for supplies or materials should show such items as weight or quantity, size, grade, unit price and total, as well as any other data appropriate to the commodity purchased. Vouchers for multiple deliveries of items such as gasoline or fuel oil should be supported by delivery tickets signed by the person accepting delivery and identifying the equipment, storage area or building into which each delivery was made. Delivery tickets furnish added proof that the district actually did receive the items for which it is paying.
- Vouchers claiming reimbursement for authorized expenses incurred by district personnel, in addition to a copy of the authorization, should show the reason for incurring the expense as well as details of the various items, such as travel, lodging, and meals. Receipted bills should be attached to expense vouchers – a hotel bill is a good example of this type of bill. When a personal car is used for travel, the voucher should indicate the purpose of travel, the number of miles traveled, the dates and points of travel and the reimbursement rate per mile. The rate per mile should be the rate established by resolution of the Board. Expense vouchers should be submitted by the person incurring the expense, and not by another individual, as a part of a general claim for all persons traveling to a common destination.
- The voucher must contain sufficient detail to permit a satisfactory audit by a person who is entirely unfamiliar with the transaction.
- Observe whether the official who gave rise to the claim has indicated his/her approval. This official is ordinarily the purchasing agent or his or her designee.
- See that the voucher is accompanied by a receipt with the signature/initials of the employee who actually received the materials or equipment for which the claim is made and date of receipt. Normally, this is transmitted through signing/initialing and dating the receiving copy of the purchase order.
The audit of a voucher by the Claims Auditor should not be a casual review, but a deliberate and thorough process to determine that the proposed payment is proper and just. In summary, the audit process should ascertain that:
- The proposed payment is for a valid and legal purpose, as per applicable policies, laws, rules, and regulations.
- The obligation was incurred by an authorized district official, and the goods or services for which payment is claimed were, in fact, received;
- The voucher is in proper form, is mathematically correct, meets legal requirements, does not include any charges for taxes from which the district is exempt, includes any discounts to which the district is entitled, does not include charges previously claimed and paid, and is in agreement with an attached purchase order or claim form for reimbursement.
The foregoing discussion is limited to vendor claims for goods and services and to claims for travel of officers and employees. However, the Board of Education may, at its option, designate the Claims Auditor to review and certify payrolls, in accordance with the provision of Part 170.12(b) of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education.
E. Certification
The Claims Auditor is required to provide the Treasurer with evidence that claims have been audited and are eligible for payment. This evidence is provided through a warrant or order on which the audited vouchers have been listed. The warrant or order is directed to the Treasurer and is certified by the Claims Auditor.
A warrant or order should specify: (1) the check number; (2) the name of the claimant; (3) the amount allowed; (4) the fund; and (5) any other information that might be deemed essential.
After conveying the warrant or order to the Treasurer, the Claims Auditor should keep on file, for reference, a copy of the warrant or order bearing his/her signed certification. A copy of the suggested warrant/order certification is provided in Exhibit 6655-E.1.
All significant exceptions should be documented and reviewed with management and the Audit Committee, on a regular basis. A copy of the suggested audit finding report is provided in Exhibit 6655-E.2.
Ref. Education Law §§ 1709(20-a); 1724 8 NYCRR, § 170.2
Adopted: October 15, 2007
Amended: November 19, 2012
Amended: May 20, 2013
Amended: March 28, 2016